A good stop for New Year trip

2010-01-07 (GMT + 7)

Wide sunflowers and other flowers swaying in the breeze and the sweet sound of running water in the distance are waiting for you at the site of Yaly Hydropower Plant and Dam in the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai this season.

The site has more than what visitors can read about on the internet when they come to watch with their own eyes and then admire what is on offer at one of the attractions in the Central Highlands.

So why don’t you tick the Yaly as one of the stops during your longer-than-usual weekend trip by car on the upcoming New Year occasion in Gia Lai or the region.

It is easy to reach the Yaly, as you can drive a car 15 kilometers on National Highway 14 from Pleiku to Kontum until you see a three-way crossroad. Turn left for another 25 kilometers, then there’s the entrance to Yaly.

An admission ticket of VND15,000 (less than US$1) sold at the entrance is the passport for a tour within the Yaly site, in which you can wander or take a drive by car to explore what you wish for as long as you want during the daytime.

A smooth asphalt road from the entrance leads you through the dam and the memorial for the people who sacrificed their lives to the national construction on the right, then river sections of stones and boulders on the left.While you are admiring the stones on the left, you should not miss taking a look to the right where tiny flowers from the cracks of stones signal the approaching spring.

The asphalt road runs down to the entrance of a tunnel, where you get off your car for a security check before you are allowed to pass the gate and walk down about 300 meters to four generators of the seven-year-old construction.

Some imaginative people describe the area of these four generators as a palace as it features yellow and red, or the two common colors at any palace you have ever seen. Of course, it is not a real palace, but photo shooting is allowed and recommended.

On the left on the way out of the tunnel is a small room where models and maps depict the structure and procedures of generating electricity at the Yaly.

The Yaly is said to be a destination for those interested in learning how a hydropower plant operates and generates electricity.

To me, the Yaly is a place appropriate for nature lovers and those who want quiet and peaceful moments and to hide themselves by the Se San River from the boisterous atmosphere of the cities and recreational parks during public holidays.